Carbon-fiber-reinforced polymers and its application

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon composite materials materials This material, referred to as carbon, is an extremely strong and lightweight fiber-reinforced plastic that contains carbon fibers. CFRP can be expensive to produce, but is commonly used where high strength-to-weight ratios and stiffness (stiffness) are required, such as aerospace, marine superstructures, automotive, civil engineering, sports equipment, and a growing number of consumer and technical applications.The binding polymer is usually a thermosetting resin such as epoxy, although other thermosetting or thermoplastic polymers such as polyester, vinyl ester or nylon are sometimes used.The properties of the final CFRP product can be affected by the type of additives introduced into the bonding matrix (resin).The most common additive is silica, but others such as rubber and carbon nanotubes can also be used.Carbon fiber is sometimes called graphite reinforced polymer or graphite fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP is less common because it conflicts with glass (fiber) reinforced polymer).

Applications

Aerospace engineering:

The Airbus A350 XWB is made of 52% CFRP including spars and fuselage components, surpassing the Boeing 787 Dreamliner as the aircraft with the highest CFRP-to-weight ratio at 50%.It was one of the first commercial aircraft to use wing spars made of composite materials.The Airbus A380 was one of the first commercial airliners to feature a carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic center wing box; it was the first to feature a smooth-contoured wing cross-section, rather than spanwise splitting the wing into multiple sections.This flowing, continuous cross-section optimizes aerodynamic efficiency.Additionally, the trailing edge, rear bulkhead, empennage and unpressurized fuselage are all made of CFRP.However, numerous delays pushed back the order delivery date due to manufacturing issues with these parts.Because the processes used to make CFRP components are relatively new, many aircraft using CFRP have experienced delays in delivery dates, while metal structures have been studied and used on airframes for years, and the processes are relatively well understood.A recurring problem is the monitoring of structural aging, and new methods are continually being investigated due to the unusual multi-material and anisotropic nature of CFRP.

In 1968, a Hyfil carbon fiber fan assembly was put into service on the Rolls-Royce Conways of the Vickers VC10 operated by BOAC.Specialist aircraft designer and manufacturer Scaled Composites has used CFRP extensively throughout its designs, including SpaceShipOne, the first private crewed spacecraft.CFRP is widely used in Micro Air Vehicles (MAV) due to its high strength-to-weight ratio.